Turkish military plane with Gaza humanitarian aid lands in Egypt
A Turkish Air Force A-400M aircraft is seen in El-Arish, Egypt, Feb. 14, 2024. (AA Photo)


A Turkish military aircraft carrying medical humanitarian aid for the Israel-besieged Gaza Strip arrived in northern Egypt's el-Arish on Wednesday.

After delivering the much-needed humanitarian aid, the aircraft – with 12 expert doctors and nurses on board – will fly a group of Gazan patients and children to Ankara for specialized treatment unavailable on the strip.

The Turkish Defense Ministry A-400M aircraft, carrying about 1.5 tons of medical supplies, took off from the 12th Air Transport Main Base Command in eastern Türkiye's Kayseri at about 7 a.m. (4 a.m. GMT).

After an approximately two-hour flight, the aircraft arrived in Egypt and the aid supplies for Palestinians were unloaded.

Gaza has faced relentless Israeli military attacks since the Oct. 7 Hamas incursion, which killed around 1,160 people.

Israeli violence, in comparison, has claimed the lives of over 28,400 people and made most of Gaza uninhabitable.

The Israeli war on Gaza has pushed 85% of the territory's population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the U.N.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which in an interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.